Seòmar agus comataidhean

Thank you very much for your frankness and honesty so far this morning. You have all talked about the frustrations that your sectors, your industries or your organisations have suffered in this process, but I am also quite encouraged by the optimism that I have seen, because your willingness to adapt, co-operate and understand is what will lead to success in all of this.

My question is about the asks that you have, now that we are so far down the road. There might be more optimism and things might be improving, but what do we need to happen next to ensure that your industries, your sectors and your organisations have the capability to move forward, given the uncertainties that you have already identified? As I have said, each and every one of you has the knowledge, wealth of experience and the understanding of what needs to be acquired, but is there a political issue that needs to be dealt with next? Is there some next stage in which you need to see us—and other organisations—impart this optimism that I have talked about as you move forward?

Good morning, Mr Wishart. It is good to see you.

I will touch on intergovernmental co-operation. It is good to see that there seem to be positive links.

The Cabinet Secretary for Constitution, External Affairs and Culture, Angus Robertson, talked about the positive relationship that extends and creates opportunities across the showcase that we are trying to manage. However, of late, there have been tensions around where that intergovernmental process has been going. There have been a number of reports about the Foreign Secretary making comments about where and how things should be managed.

I would like to get a flavour of the real sense of things. Is there a tension building between the two Governments, rather than positive activity? If there is, how will that be resolved to ensure that we capture, promote and work together to get the best?

You make some very valid points about the constructive work that is required and is being done, which is appreciated. As a member of this committee, I have certainly seen much of that displayed in what has been taking place. I hope that—as you said—we can get over and manage the situation, because it is a distraction from what we are all trying to achieve, which is to ensure that we create a positive impression and image and that we are collectively and responsibly working together.

For your committee, are there areas that you might want to expand on or areas that are possibilities for the future that would rebuild bridges?

Good morning, and thank you for your comments so far.

The record spend is very welcome and shows the commitment that is there. There have been some real successes, which you have touched on. Although audience satisfaction has proved to be good, there has been perceived to be some negativity in relation to how Scotland is portrayed by the BBC. That is an area for you to investigate and seek to make improvements in.

As you have said, you are having to compete to meet the demands of the modern viewer, whether younger or older, depending on what they are looking for. You must try to square that circle to ensure that you capture as many markets as you can. You are unquestionably achieving that in some areas, and I commend you for that, but there is the issue of how you manage to address the negativity.

You have mentioned the audience participation that is available with some programmes, and where you see the organisation going. I want to explore how you will cope as you look to the future. The BBC is unquestionably held in high regard; it has a certain status. However, you are competing with STV when it comes to local and regional news in Scotland and, in some ways, you are perhaps being overtaken.

It would be good to get a flavour of what you are trying to achieve and where you see the organisation going. What do you anticipate happening in the next year or two with regard to those areas that you need to command and control? Some of those areas are within your control and others are not.

Good morning, cabinet secretary. The increased money is definitely welcome, as are your ambitions to sustain, develop and innovate. Those are fundamental—there is no question about that at all. However, the committee has heard in evidence criticism from stakeholders that there is a misalignment between the Scottish Government’s culture strategy and the funding that the sector receives. There does not seem to be a clear sense of how the strategy informs the budget process. Do you accept that criticism from the sector?

You have said that we cannot continue in the way that we are and that we need to be thinking about change. I do not disagree with any of the potential opportunities that you have talked about regarding how we could change and develop the sector and support it for the future. However, we already know, and you have said today, that local government does not always have the priority, the need and the financial resource. It might have the ambition, but it might not be able to fulfil it without there being a much more strategic approach to how the culture strategy and the budgetary decisions are managed together.

Your new concepts, BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds, seem to be another way to capture people who come back to watch or listen to content at another time. That is an area that you are continuing to develop. Where do you see that new venture going for you?

I know that time is tight, so I am quite content.

It is not new—in fact, it is very similar to what has already been asked, convener.

Today, we have heard that there is confidence, but there is fragility, too. You have all intimated that the problem is the cost of running your organisations. It is about attracting performers or staff, rewarding them and maintaining them. At the moment, that is where you are all finding it really difficult to manage the process for the future. You have all done a lot more for less—we have seen that over the years—and you have touched on what the strategy should try to do to maintain and sustain the process.

If you do not maintain and sustain it, the sector will be decimated. There is no question about that—the writing is on the wall. You have talked about being cut to the bone and keeping the show on the road. I am not sure whether some of your organisations will be sustainable even with the £100 million, in the timescale that you have been given.

There is no question that the proposed budget has given us some sense of stability, but it has not alleviated any of the concerns about increased running costs, falling income and the implications of fair work, and such things, that might have to be added to the process.

During the earlier evidence session, there was some discussion of UK tax support. That has been welcomed by some organisations. It would be useful to take a view from Creative Scotland about what it thinks of that situation and how it affects the current running of many organisations. What would you like to see in future? Should it be included in the strategy that was discussed in the earlier evidence session about the implications?

The discussion has been interesting—thank you for your participation. You are the window of Scotland, wherever you are located, and that is fantastic to see. Successes are happening continually. However, you are trying to manage trade and industry, culture, education, innovation and energy—the list is endless—with the capacity issues that you identified this morning, so what becomes the priority to ensure that you capture the market that you want?

We would like to have you doing all of that, but that is not possible with the people and resources that you have, so how do you square that circle to ensure that you are trying to capture as much of those areas as you can? What priority is specific to the location that you are in—is it your biggest market, the one that you want to develop the most, or the one that has the most potential? You cannot cover it all, but I think that that is what you are trying to do. You have co-operation from UK embassies and others that you can draw on, but what is the main priority for each of you in your location?